


operation swanqueen

by blahblahblahwriting



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Intervention, OUAT - Freeform, i imagine this is a deleted scene somewhere, swanqueen - Freeform, wlw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-17 03:21:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29710863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blahblahblahwriting/pseuds/blahblahblahwriting
Summary: the one where an emotional intervention is spearheaded by the savior's family (spoiler - they are harder SwanQueen shippers than us.)
Relationships: Evil Queen | Regina Mills & Emma Swan, Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Emma Swan, Regina Mills/Emma Swan, SwanQueen, regina mills & emma swan
Comments: 5
Kudos: 38





	operation swanqueen

**Author's Note:**

> actually super loved writing about this concept, but i greatly appreciate all motivation in the form of comments. x

“She is not going to like this,” Mary Margaret mumbled while pacing the kitchen.

David and Henry were seated in the living room, both stifling a smirk in response to the matriarch’s anxiety.

Seeing their obvious amusement, Mary Margaret’s eyebrows furrowed.

“I’m serious, you two! Emma does not exactly enjoy talking about her emotions. I can only imagine how she’ll react to a full-on interrogation.”

The savior’s mother continued her path around the island, this time incorporating a trip to the couch to grab the comic book from Henry’s hands. The young boy opened his mouth to object but was quickly thwarted.

“Not the time for casual reading, Henry! You’ll get this back once we figure out our game-plan.”

A laugh escaped David’s lips. “Game-plan? Really, Snow?”

“Yes, David. A game-plan is more necessary now than when we were up against the Evil Queen.”

The two boys continued to discretely dismiss such worries. They’d faced far worse foes in the past five years than a demure blonde hero.

“Gram, Gramps,” Henry voiced, “I know my mom. She loves us! She knows we only want the best for her.”

David chimed in, showing his support for Henry’s sentiment. “The kid’s right, Mary Margaret. We’re family – it’s our job to help her accept the things she can’t yet see.”

Mary Margaret sighed. “I know it’s our job, David. And I know this will be good for her. I just worry that it will seem like an attack.”

The prince met his wife by the kitchen island and offered a sense of comfort in the form of a hand placed on her shoulder. “She won’t. She's a smart girl and she's your daughter - she’ll understand we only have her best intentions at heart.”

The two locked eyes and, as always, Snow’s nerves were calmed.

“So, a game-plan?” David indulged.

Snow smiled as Henry’s eyes began to widen.

“So,” the young boy suggested, “a game-plan sounds an awful lot like an operation.”

“You just might be right, Henry,” both grandparents echoed, clearly entertained.

“Awesome!” Henry gushed. “Let’s call it . . . Operation SwanQueen!”

* * *

A few hours later, the three had come up with the following course of action:

  1. Welcome Emma home with cinnamon-topped hot chocolate
  2. Make brief small talk
  3. Segway the conversation to Regina
  4. Probe her feelings for the Queen
  5. Finally, tell Emma that her true feelings were fairly obvious; if not to her, to the rest of Storybrooke



Of course, Snow had to specify that progressing to each next step was contingent upon the blonde’s responsiveness. At no point in this process should Emma ever feel the need to be defensive. Mary Margaret was determined to be meticulous about gauging her daughter’s feelings, as she still felt the need to make up for the twenty-eight years she missed.

When the game-plan was finalized, and all parties were satisfied, all that remained to do was wait for the savior’s return.

* * *

Emma had endured a long day of work; policing fairytale characters always surprised her in its difficulty. Nevertheless, the thought of returning home to three pairs of open arms was more than enough to make up for the stress.

As she climbed the stairs to her shared apartment, she could almost taste the cup of hot cocoa that characterized her nights. And when the door flung open before she could reach the knob, the savory liquid stared her in the face. Along with her concerningly smile-y mother.

“Uh, hello to you to?” Emma jested.

As the blonde progressed through the doorway, she was met with the equally large smiles of her father and son. As much as she loved the sight, it wasn’t exactly a nightly occurrence. Coupled with her own pessimism, Emma grew increasingly worried about the source of such “happiness”.

“Who died?” Emma questioned, partly joking.

The three laughed simultaneously, attempting to diminish the tension, until their self-proclaimed leader spoke up.

“No one died, Emma, we’re just happy to see you! How was your day?” Mary Margaret prodded.

Emma’s increasingly furrowed eyebrows expressed her dissatisfaction with the brunette’s response. “I’ve been gone for max eight hours, Mary Margaret. What’s going on?”

David and Mary Margaret exchanged a hesitant glance when the younger boy dared to pull them away for a brief intermission. “Maybe Operation SwanQueen is better without a game-plan,” he whispered as he dragged the two into the attached bedroom.

Mary Margaret shot the boy a look of disapproval when David spoke up.

“He’s right, Mary Margaret. Emma’s too smart for small talk, she obviously knows something is up. I say we just get right into it.”

“She’s all about honesty,” Henry nodded in agreement, “We all are. Let’s just talk to her.”

“Fine,” Snow conceded. “To hell with the game-plan. Let’s go, troops.” And with this, the three confidently marched back to Emma’s side with a regained sense of purpose.

In the presence of the savior’s scowl, hesitancy returned. This time, it was Henry who initiated the conversation.

“You’re right, mom. I don’t know what we expected, with your superpower and all.”

Emma tousled his brown hair affectionately, obviously awaiting further explanation.

“We just wanted to make you feel comfortable before we brought something up,” he muttered. “But we kind of forgot that you totally know when we’re hiding something, so here goes.” He quickly turned to his grandparents for reassurance and, when received, continued. “You and my mom. You guys have a weird relationship. But I know you like each other, no matter what you say. It’s just, lately, we all think it might be more than that.”

Henry weighed his options in choosing whether to continue speaking or give Emma a chance to digest the limited amount of information he’d offered. He decided on the latter.

Confusion reinhabited the blonde’s face as she looked to each of her parents for clarity. Snow stepped forward and delicately took the girl’s forearm in her hand.

“Emma,” she smiled, “I know this is a sensitive topic for you. And the last thing I want to do is cross the line but, if you’ll recall, I’m quite familiar with what true love looks like,” she offered David a tender look. “And I see that. With you. When you’re with her.”

As her family boasted the most genuine smiles she’d ever seen, Emma struggled to conceptualize what they were suggesting. Or, more accurately, simply stating.

Emma’s lips parted as she began to think out loud, “You think I love Regina?”

Another small grin from her mother was all the answer the blonde required.

Her furrowed brows turned upwards as Emma considered something she hadn’t yet dared to. She slowly made her way to the couch, attempting to understand the multitude of thoughts occupying her mind. _Regina. And me? True love? I’m not sure if I’ve ever truly loved anyone, much less my mom’s ex-nemesis._ To be honest, Emma had never given much consideration to the reason behind the butterflies she experienced in Regina’s presence. Or the way she couldn’t seem to look away from the Queen’s dark eyes. Or the way she had begun to enjoy the idea of their little family centered around their shared son. _It’s not because I’m in love with her. It’s for Henry. Right?_

After allowing their daughter a few minutes of introspection, David and Mary Margaret returned to her side, attempting to impart their guidance.

Emma’s eyes darted among the three of her relatives, desperate to establish some sort of coherence.

“Okay,” Emma stammered, “there might, maybe, be a grain of truth in that.”

At the closest thing to a confession he’d hoped to get, Henry beamed.

“Happy about that, kid?” Emma laughed.

“More than you know,” Henry answered as he joined her on the couch.

Emma directed her next question at her joyful parents. “So, true-love experts, where do I go from here?”

A smirk appeared on both Charming and Snow’s obnoxiously satisfied faces.

“Now this, Emma,” Snow began, “this requires a game-plan.”


End file.
